Episode 30 (Manga)
Synopsis On the eve of the Band of the Falcon's return to Wyndham, a banquet is thrown in Griffith's and their honor. For the first time ever, the Falcons, with the exception of Griffith, must get dressed up to attend a formal party in the presence of aristocrats. Since the entire Band of the Falcon comprises several thousand soldiers, their chief officers and division leaders are responsible for appearing in their stead. They are: Griffith, Guts, Casca, Judeau, Corkus, Pippin and Rickert. Of the seven, Griffith is easily the most at ease in the situation. Upon entering the banquet hall, he is swarmed by women who want to meet him. Once their is no room to get to Griffith, however, the other male Falcons are also quickly surrounded and questioned. Guts in particular is admired for his defeat of Boscogn. He is soon overwhelmed and escapes from the horde of women still fawning over the other male Falcons. Also attending the banquet are Laban and Owen, who notice other noblemen staring intently at Griffith. They discuss how Griffith's legendarily swift rise in status is bound to attract people who want to prevent him from reaching new heights. As Guts sits down on one of the benches lining the walls of the hall, he spots Casca who, like the men among the Falcons, is swarmed by people of the opposite gender. She, in turn, sees Guts watching, excuses herself from her conversation partners, and rushes over to him, using him as a means of escape from the party. Free of the crowd, Guts notice how radiant Casca looks in her dress. She elbows his chin in response, and she drags him out onto the banquet hall's terrace, which is devoid of people. Outside, Casca admits to Guts that she fears she looks unattractive due to her musculature, what with being a female soldier, but Guts assures her that she looks good. He tells her that she should ask Griffith to dance, but she declines, fearing she'd make a fool of herself. Casca begins to question Guts, asking what possible force on Earth could have made him attend a formal banquet. He replies that the party is the fruit of Griffith's dream, and he wants to see it with his own eyes. Casca asks if he really means to leave the Falcons, but, before he can answer, the crowd inside begins to cheer, welcoming the King, Queen and Princess of Midland to the ball. Casca goes to return inside, inviting Guts along with her, but he decides to stay outside for a while longer. Before she enters the hall, Guts calls out to her, but decides he has nothing to say. He thinks to himself that there is another reason he came to the ball, a reason the other Falcons, with the exception Griffith, aren't aware of. Inside, the King of Midland formally addresses the crowd. He summarizes the hardships Midland has endured in the war, announces that Midland and Tudor have signed an armistice, thus bringing an end to the war, thanks everyone present for being an ally to him, and ends on the big news that he intends to award the Band of the Falcon in its entirety a new, higher status, and a renaming to the White Phoenix Knights. Additionally, Griffith will be promoted from viscount to General of the White Phoenix Knights. Appended to this is the promotion of the unit commanders of the Band of the Falcon (Guts, Casca, Judeau, Corkus, Pippin and Rickert), who will all receive knighthoods and new titles, similar to Griffith's current title of viscount. The Falcons inside the hall are all stunned at the news that they will soon be nobility. Amidst the cheering crowd, Griffith looks outside, sees Guts, and smiles warmly at him. Characters in Order of Appearance * Judeau * Pippin * Guts * Rickert * Corkus * Griffith * Laban * Owen * Casca * Charlotte * King of Midland * Queen of Midland